Anthrax

Reign of Fury – Exorcise Reality [Things You Might Have Missed 2019]

Reign of Fury – Exorcise Reality [Things You Might Have Missed 2019]

“I can’t believe it’s been four years since I first listened to Reign of Fury. For those of you that don’t remember, or weren’t alive during that time, Reign of Fury’s 2015 release, Death Be Thy Shepherd, was so good it landed atop my year-end list. As I read over the words I wrote long ago, three things are clear. First, I’m still a shitty writer. Second, boy, a lot has changed in what seemed like a perfect life for ole Grier. Third, Exorcise Reality is no Death Be Thy Shepherd, Part Deux.” Reality bites.

Aphrodite – Lust and War Review

Aphrodite – Lust and War Review

“The dog days of summer are upon us. The glory of finding albums that are monthly contenders for our highest accolades seems but a distant memory. Instead, we find ourselves scouring the pits of promo hell in desperate searches for something, anything, with redeeming qualities. So I find myself saddled (by my own choice) with Lust and War, the debut album from Toronto’s Aphrodite.” Speed kills.

Video Premiere and Interviews with Stevie Boiser and Trevor Portz of Ashen Horde

Video Premiere and Interviews with Stevie Boiser and Trevor Portz of Ashen Horde

“Back in March, I reviewed Ashen Horde’s latest opus of black metal fury, Fallen Cathedrals. I heaped an unhealthy amount of praise its way back then, and I’m still spinning it a ton now. In fact, I would be very surprised if it were to fall outside of my top 5 albums come year’s end. My review may have been riddled with factual errors, but founder, songwriter, instrumentalist, and clean vocalist Trevor Portz showed up in the comments and revealed himself to be a gracious and enormously cool guy. So, when the opportunity to do an interview presented itself, I couldn’t resist.” We’re already off to a better start than last time.

Hellnite – Midnight Terrors Review

Hellnite – Midnight Terrors Review

“During their halcyon years Metallica, Megadeth, Slayer and Anthrax loomed large over the thrash landscape, basking in success and spawning a fanbase so large it defied a horizon. But there existed a tier below the A and B-listers, bands like Allegiance, Heathen and Xentrix who eked out a modest existence built on solid albums supported by a coterie of eager followers. This is not a vein you’d expect a modern thrash band to mine for inspiration, yet that is exactly where Hellnite have chosen to strike their pickaxe with their debut album, Midnight Terrors.” Mine the medium.

Vanik – II: Dark Season Review

Vanik – II: Dark Season Review

“There are many ways to celebrate Halloween: candy; costumes; horror movies; punk-influenced thrash metal albums from Cleveland. The latter is brought to you this October [Er, November… my badEd.] by Vanik, a thrash band Frankensteined together from punk and metal musicians harvested from the likes of Toxic Holocaust, Ringworm and Vindicator. Following up their self-titled debut, Vanik have now sharpened their Voorheesian machetes in preparation for spreading terror with their new Halloween-themed record II: Dark Season, released by Shadow Kingdom Records.” Is one of the ways you can celebrate Halloween as dressing up as a retro thrash band and releasing a record? That answer, inside!

Septagon – Apocalyptic Rhymes Review

Septagon – Apocalyptic Rhymes Review

“When a band drops a successful debut, the weight off their shoulders must be akin to cracking the top level of a pro sport. A million and one obstacles overcome, plus proving to the world that your shit doesn’t totally stink? Must feel nice. Not that I have firsthand experience—producing these bad boys is more a nice can sesh than a cold, rainy night in Stoke. But like writing, music needs to have consistency. Reviewing their 2016 debut, Jean-Luc Ricard suggested that Septagon might have a modern classic in them, but Deadhead Syndicate wasn’t it. Compared to Apocalyptic Rhymes, Deadhead Syndicate is Rust in Peace.” Thrash pile.

Striker – Play to Win Review

Striker – Play to Win Review

“Among the dearest casualties of the politicization of everything is fun. When the cultural and historical illiterates suggest that all art is political, they neuter the possibility of art as a universal language and instead make it speak in partisan tongues. What could bring us together – the “language” of metal is spoken as fluently in Rio as it is in Quebec, just with different accents – is instead used to rip us apart. For the above reasons, I’m glad Striker exists.” Does anyone remember fun?

Tornado – Commitment to Excellence Review

Tornado – Commitment to Excellence Review

“The world of today is in turmoil. Across the Western world, after decades of growth for love, tolerance and liberty, a movement of blanket hatred for the ‘other’ has begun to creep up through the pores. That movement, which has been festering in the darkness and has finally started to expose itself in full in recent years, has infected political discourse all over North America and Europe. Most metal bands simply keep trucking on, and that’s a good thing. We all need an escape from the raging shitstorm every now and then. Finnish thrash band Tornado could not abide by this, however, and they’re taking their music to the streets, likely along with a few picketing signs.” Commit to semi-goodness.

Shotgun Rodeo – By Hook or by Crook Review

Shotgun Rodeo – By Hook or by Crook Review

“My first hard rock record was Saliva’s Survival of the Sickest. I don’t mean that it was the first thing that could be lumped into the hard rock category that I’d ever heard—far from it—but that record gave me—then just into my teens—that missing bridge between classic rock and heavy metal. I could listen to both at the same time by throwing it on, hearing rock n’ roll played by a band who still had the nu-metal swagger of their early days. That link between genres is exactly what I look for in hard rock, and it seems that the Norwegians in Shotgun Rodeo think the same way.” Rock the bulls.